V&A Conservation Journal, no 67

V&A Conservation Journal No.67

V&A Conservation Journal No.67

A spoon full of care: conservation and packing for delicate sherbet spoons Boudewien Westra, Furniture Conservator

break edges were difficult to see in the colourless glass latticework, even with magnification. When the correct placement was found, it was just as difficult to hold the fragment in position for bonding. Bonding continued gradually until the delicate lamp-worked parts were ready to be reattached to the base (Fig. 4).

In areas where the Paraloid joins failed to hold or where extra strength was required, Hxtal NYL-1 (epoxy resin) was applied to the join. Once all the parts were securely attached to the base, the sea of glass fibres and flakes was reintroduced. Finally, the centrepiece was covered by the newly cleaned dome and the corners secured to the base with Paraloid B-72.

Fig. 4 During conservation, bonding the completed lamp-worked parts to the base (Photography by F. Jordan © Victoria and Albert Museum, London)

The treatment of the centrepiece was a practical challenge, requiring patience and a steady hand to relocate the fragments, but the more time that was spent working on the object the more enchanting it became. Now that the centrepiece is together once again it is ready for display in the Glass Galleries, where it can be enjoyed by all (Fig. 5).

Acknowledgements

This conservation work has been made possible with funds raised in memory of Jonathan Nevitt.

I am grateful to my conservation colleagues, Fi Jordan and Victoria Oakley, for their advice, and to my curatorial colleagues, Reino Liefkes, Judith Crouch and Florence Tyler, for their expertise and assistance with this project.

References

1. Manca, R, Burgio, L, Analysis Report 19-86-RM-LB Glass centre-piece – C.772-1936, Victoria and Albert Museum, 2019.

Fig. 5 Glass centrepiece after conservation © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

4

Figs. 1 and 2 Transparent tray with Sherbet spoons (L) and Sherbet spoon 1289-1874 (R), before conservation treatment (Photography by P. Kevin and B.C. Westra © Victoria and Albert Museum, London)

Much of the Victoria and Albert Museum’s collection is currently stored at Blythe House in West London but will be moving to Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in East London, where the Museum will open two interconnected sites in 2023: a Collection and Research Centre (CRC) at Here East and a new museum at Stratford Waterfront. Consequently, this will create an extraordinary opportunity for the public to see more of the V&A’s collections.

out to achieve a satisfying and safe result for the object. This article will focus on a group of fragile and awkwardly-shaped sherbet spoons as a good example to illustrate a combination of interventive treatment and simple but effective specialist packing as the best solution for their safe transportation and future storage.

Sherbet spoons are used in the West Asian, Indian subcontinental and Indonesian tradition surrounding sherbet. Sherbet is a sweet cordial drink prepared from fruits or flower petals and is usually served chilled in a ceramic basin. The spoons were placed on the side of the bowls, with their handles balanced, floating on top of the sherbet. Guests would drink from the spoon then place the spoon back in the basin for others to use. The V&A’s collection of sherbet spoons is extensive and highly decorative, and it is thought to have been used by the well-to-do. Sherbet spoons are generally made of pear- and boxwood and consist of two parts: a long handle joined to the bowl-section by a socket. A large carved rosette is usually placed on top of the socket. Occasionally spoons were decorated with paint and finished with a clear varnish. However, the majority of these spoons remain unfinished. Most of the spoons in the Museum’s collection originate from Abadah in Iran and were made between 1800 – 1900.¹

Over the past two years, the Blythe House Decant Collections Project Team have been preparing the collections for this move. Part of this team is a group of conservators who treat and prepare objects to stabilise them before they are packed and transported to CRC. Two furniture conservators have been working steadily on over seven hundred objects assessed as requiring treatment, including pieces of furniture and other wooden objects such as picture frames, carvings, architectural elements, gilded objects and puppets. Most of the treatments involve stabilisation of the objects to minimise potential risk of damage during transport. Every object is unique and therefore the conservation work can vary from structural treatments to consolidating decorative surfaces and less interventive approaches such as providing bespoke packaging or handling boards. Sometimes a combination of these is carried

5